Articles

There’s an expression that “scales fall from someone’s eyes” when they have a revolutionary insight or gain a completely new perspective and understanding. It refers to the Damascus experience of Paul (then known as Saul) when, after he became blind, he was visited by Ananias and, as the Bible describes, “immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith” (see Acts 9:1–18 ).

Christian Scientists believe in, honor, and obey the Ten Commandments as given to Moses by God thousands of years ago. Many of them, such as the commands not to kill or steal (see Exodus 20:13, 15 ), have been embraced by society and have become part of everyday life.

To quiet the clamor of worldly thinking, many people meditate. Others hike in the wilderness or go on a religious retreat.

We learn in Christian Science that God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent. And since God is good, we would naturally expect His government to be good—to be fair and just, to express kindness, honesty, incorruptibility.

It matters what we think. Every day, we entertain thousands of thoughts.

It’s my daily practice to pray with the ninety-first Psalm from the Bible, as I was once told that it’s referred to as the “Soldier’s Psalm” because it is so filled with the thought of protection. One morning, I felt particularly guided to pay close attention to this line in the psalm: “Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder” ( verse 13 ).

The remarkable Old Testament story of Sarah’s servant Hagar is one worth revisiting. Difficulties in the home prompted Abraham, Sarah’s husband, to send Hagar and her son away into the wilderness with only a bottle of water and some bread.

When actors play their role convincingly, we believe that they are the character they portray. Even though we know it’s an act, their performance can be so convincing that it affects us emotionally.

Do you find that things which once were simple, like regularly attending church services, now seem complicated or difficult? Do you now have to face pressure from family members to sleep in on Sundays, or go away for the weekend? For a midweek testimony meeting, there might be concerns about traffic or public transit congestion, security issues, fatigue, an employer’s expectations that you work into the evening, or trouble driving at night. All this may make going to church feel like going to the moon.

In my sadness after a very dear friend passed away, I told a colleague I was dreading the upcoming Fourth of July celebration. That was because my friend—someone I thought of as family—would always invite me to watch the fireworks with her and other friends at her house.